Improving Parent Communication with Technology Summer 2006 Workshop

Course Introduction Instructor Participants Registration for Credit Jenny will discuss issues in obtaining credit Sign-in Sheets Provided Daily Assignments Collected Daily &/or on Friday Parent Communication Tools Teacher Websites Class Newsletters PowerPoint Presentation for Special Occasions Parent Letters and Surveys Phone Logs Online Resources for supporting student learning

Overview/Introduction Course Requirements Daily Journal Attendance Presentations and Products from Activities Best Practices in Parent Communication/Involvement Brainstorm Communication using Inspiration in groups Focus on Web-based Parent Communication Tools Explore Teacher Created Websites Group exploration and creation activities Develop a Personal Plan for Improved Communication EZ Website Introduction and Website Creation Daily reflection/journal assignment Agenda – Day 1

Best Practices in Parent Communication/Involvement Guiding Question: What are examples of Best Practices in Parent Communication? What technology could you use to create, encourage, and/or support each practice? Divide into small groups of 4-5 Brainstorm a list of Parent Communication Practices Use Inspiration to create a web of practices Add second level symbols &/or Notes describing Technology use Prepare to present your findings Save your presentation to the shared folder for this course Use Inspiration webs to share

Activity 1 –Parent Communication and Support with Teacher Websites Guiding Question: What role can the web play in school-home communication? Divide into small groups Examine list of web sites Parent-Focused Examples Instructional Extensions General Content Prepare presentation of findings Use PowerPoint or Internet Browser

Teacher-Created Web Content Elementary

Teacher-Created Web Content Secondary

Outstanding Teacher Sites Welcome To Mrs. Schwuchow's Class North Harrison High School Visual Arts Department Mr. Allen's Mathematics Journeys to Antarctica & Beyond Mr. Smith ’ s High School World History and Geography

Web Pages Support Learning Inviting & Meaningful Provide Relevance Inspire Creativity Inform Parents Strengthen school-home communication Reflect classroom & community

School Web Pages Information about school & community School calendar School rules/student handbook Announcements Faculty & staff Link to district site Links to class pages Projects Web sites for parents & students School achievements & awards

Classroom Web Pages Class routines, special events Philosophy of learning & teaching How teacher organizes & implements instruction Links to school & district Units taught Opportunities to publish student writing Opportunities to collaborate Special projects Links to web sites Class projects

What Do Parents Want? Whole-Group Brainstorming What do parents want to know? What resources, information, pages should we provide? How can teacher websites impact parent communication/involvement?

Activity 2 –Planning Your Website Guiding Question: What would you like to include in your website that you feel would improve parent communication and support learning? Divide into small groups (3 to 4) Review Teacher Websites Brainstorm list in MS Word using Numbering or Outlining format of pages/content you will include Share ideas with class Prepare an Inspiration web for participants of ideas Print, copy and hand out results Circle or Highlight Ideas you would like to pursue on your site “In the long run, men hit only what they aim at.” -Henry David Thoreau

Annoying Web Site Traits Whole Group Brainstorming What drives you nuts when looking at websites? What drives you nuts when navigating a website? What would keep you from returning to a website? What other traits annoy website visitors?

What does your district say about… Student photos Student work Common content Reviews/authority to publish Publishing process Timeliness File size limits Others?

Introduction to EZ Website Create accounts Review page types Examine adding special content Photos Documents Calendar Work Time

Daily Reflection/Journal Keep a daily record Class notes Reflections Websites & other resources Other information How do you think a classroom web page can help you improve your personal communication with parents?

National PTA/PTO National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs Guidelines for schools When parents receive frequent and effective communication from the school or program, their involvement increases, their overall evaluation of educators improves, and their attitudes toward the program are more positive. ndex.asp

Introduction to HTML HyperText Markup Language Plain-text editor WYSIWYG editors

HTML Tags Use to mark elements One-sided Two-sided This is arial Attributes Paragraph Font Background Markup Tags Linking Tags Required elements

Basic HTML Document A Simple HTML Example HTML is Easy To Learn Welcome to the world of HTML. This is the first paragraph. While short it is still a paragraph! And this is the second paragraph. Now, let’s try to create our own HTML document!